Bears LT Braxton Jones
Getty
Bears LT Braxton Jones
When Ben Johnson met with reporters at the league meetings this week, he didn’t pretend theChicago Bears had the left tackle position figured out.
“You’d love to have your long-term starter for the next 10 years locked up,”Johnson said. “There’s a lot of uncertainty right now. We don’t know.”
That uncertainty was supposed to be solved byOzzy Trapilo. Instead, his patellar tendon injury in the playoff win over thePackers has likely taken him out of the 2026 picture almost entirely.
Which leaves the Bears staring at a premium position with no clear answer… Or at least, that’s how it looked from the outside.
Because the way Johnson talked aboutBraxton Jones, it sounded like a coach describing a player he believes is about to re-enter the picture in a very real way.
“He came in when he signed the contract and he looked like a brand-new man. This guy was beefed up. He was probably 310 pounds and he looked yoked up. He’s very determined to get his career trajectory back to where it was before.”
The forgotten part of Braxton Jones’ story
Bears LT Braxton Jones
GettyBears LT Braxton Jones
Braxton Jones started 44 games at left tackle for the Chicago Bears after being drafted in the fifth round out of Southern Utah in 2022. He started all 17 games as a rookie.
Then the injuries hit. A fractured fibula late in 2024 wrecked his offseason heading into a coaching change. He won the job back in camp last summer anyway, beating out Trapilo,Theo Benedet andKiran Amegadjie.
But as Johnson admitted, Jones never felt like himself: “What he put on tape those first four games, he didn’t feel like was very reflective of what he’s capable of. Looking back at it, we would agree with that. There’s more in there than what we saw.”
By week 4, Jones was benched during a road win over theRaiders. A few weeks later, he suffered a knee injury in practice that ended his season.
From the outside, it looked like his Bears tenure had quietly ended. From Johnson’s perspective, it sounds like it never really got a fair evaluation.
Why this offseason feels different
Bears LT Braxton Jones
GettyBears LT Braxton Jones
Braxton Jones hit free agency for the first time this spring. The market was quiet so the Chicago Bears called with a one year deal worth up to $10 million. He took it for one reason: the chance to win his job back.
And according to Ben Johnson, he showed up looking like a player who rebuilt himself for one. 310 pounds and “Yoked up.”
Still, Johnson made it clear: all options are on the table at left tackle. That includes Theo Benedet,Jedrick Wills Jr., or any rookie they might add.
Still, Jones isn’t being framed as a veteran holding a spot until Trapilo returns. It’s being framed as a player trying to restart the trajectory he had before injuries derailed it.
And if he pulls it off, the Bears may have stumbled into the most unexpected solution on the roster.
Ben Johnson’s words didn’t guarantee Braxton Jones will win the job. But they made one thing very clear: The Bears don’t view him as an afterthought at left tackle anymore.